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I'll admit I bought the AFFAIR OF THE NECKLACE DVD because I like the plot and the cast, particularly Adrien Brody. Despite John Sweet's uneven script, this fact-based tale of intrigue and scams in Marie Antoinette's court is watchable thanks to sumptuous production values (Milena Canonero's gorgeous costume design garnered an Oscar nomination), scene-stealing performances by Christopher Walken and Adrien Brody (who even gets into some swordplay as the heroine's dissolute nobleman husband. Few people can make lechery and debauchery look as sexy and fun as Brody does here! :-), and good solid work from most of the rest of the cast. In this drastic change of pace from her Oscar-winning performances in BOYS DON'T CRY and MILLION DOLLAR BABY, Hilary Swank plays Jeanne St. Remy de Valois, who takes revenge on her father's death and her family's ruin by pulling a scam on Cardinal Louis de Rohan (Jonathan Pryce is a delightfully oily hypocrite and dupe) involving an ornate diamond necklace designed for exiled Madame DuBarry and spurned by the Queen (Joely Richardson captures Marie Antoinette's self-absorbed naïveté while still managing to make me feel a little sorry for her, knowing she'd pay for her foolishness with her life). Swank's performance isn't bad, but it's not as assured as it should be, considering that Jeanne's plot turned out to be instrumental in spawning the French Revolution. Next to the rest of the sterling cast, which also includes Brian Cox and Simon Baker, Swank sometimes comes across as a little girl who's playing dress-up and feeling self-conscious about it. Don't get me wrong, I like Swank in her contemporary roles, but I don't think costume epics are the best fit for her. FTR, my fave line comes from Brody who, after being shot by Swank's lady-in-waiting during his swordfight with Baker, is having the bullet in his butt removed none-too-gently by a doctor: "Good God, man, are you digging for potatoes?!" :-) The DVD's extras include a "Making Of..." featurette and many enjoyable deleted scenes, including an exciting horseback chase between Baker and Brody that was, alas, cut for time.Read full review
Based on a historical event that led ultimately to Marie Antoinette's death. Beautiful costumes and interesting take on the story behind the event. Researching the characters first helps you to understand the movie better in my opinion. Simon Baker is a scoundrel who falls in love with Hillary Swank's character, Jeanne.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
A handsomely produced film version of the notorious "Affair of the Necklace", starring Hilary Swank, Adrien Brodie, Simon Baker, Christopher Walken, Joely Richardson and Jonathan Price in the leading roles. Filmed on location in many scenes, with sumptuous costumes and period settings that recreate the world of pre-Revolutionary Versailles and Paris in the closing years of the French monarchy. Excellent performances, particularly from Jonathan Price as the decadent Cardinal de Rohan, and Joely Richardson as the doomed Queen, Marie Antoinette, make this a dramatically and visually satisfying movie. Very reasonably priced and in pristine condition, it is one of the more historically accurate film versions of a story often over-dramatized in the telling.
Love royalty and history. Whether it be fiction or non fiction. The this movie so much.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
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